Assignments and responsibilities: Development Director for Rentokil (largest independent Pest Control Company) in the UK, Ireland and Baltic countries. Former Honorary President of the University of Paisley, now the University of the West of Scotland, for the maximum four year period.

Professional Experiences: Broad experience in international business, especially in the field of Pest Control in Scotland, Estonia and Cyprus. Consultancy for operations in Baltics and Eastern Europe.

Potential sectors for promoting cooperation with Estonia: broad variety of Estonian companies have been introduced to Scotland and also Scottish companies to Estonia over the many years and there is room for further development. Various Scottish weeks in Estonia and Estonia Days in Scotland have been organized where a combination of trade delegates, cultural events and music events have taken place in both countries. There activities should go on.

Visions for cooperation: there are numerous opportunities for Estonian companies in Scotland as it is an easy market to enter and much less expensive than London for instance. Awareness of Estonia is highest within Scotland amongst the countries of the UK, not least because of our sporting links but also because we have our own media and the Nordics and Baltics are perhaps of more interest to us than others. There is a real opportunity for Estonian companies to set up cooperation deals with similar sized Scottish companies, where each company takes on a responsibility to market a range of the other companies’ products within the markets they operate in. Scottish and Estonian companies are unlikely to share many common markets and with the Scots being particularly strong within the UK, Ireland, France and North America and Estonian companies active in Finland, Russia, the other Baltic countries there is a recipe here for great success if cooperation and joint marketing campaigns can be agreed. Consulate is always happy to help and advise Estonian companies who are interested in the Scottish market.

Associations: Active participation in politics in the past, senior positions in the Conservative Party and later in the Scottish National Party - Executive Vice Convenor, Party’s spokesman for Trade and Industry etc. Excellent relations with the Scottish Government, most notably in the context of an Independence Referendum scheduled for September 2014.

Hobbies: watching the Scottish Football team attempt to secure a place in any major finals, spending hours on a bank being outwitted by a wide variety of fish and playing increasingly frustrating games of golf.